People applying for a United States passport must apply in person at a Passport Acceptance Facility if they are first-time passport applicants or under the age of 16. Other reasons a person must apply for their passport in person include those whose current passport was issued when they were under the age of 16, if their passport was lost, damaged or stolen, and if their passport was issued more than 15 years before. According to the U.S. Department of State, Passport Acceptance agencies are post offices, local government agencies, and public libraries assigned by the Department of State's Bureau of Affairs to accept passport applications.
Anyone applying for a U.S. passport must present the appropriate documentation along with their passport application, including proof of citizenship, identification and a photograph. Acceptable forms of citizenship are birth certificates, current passports, Consular Report of Birth Abroad, Naturalization Certificates and Certificates of Citizenship. Forms of identification accepted with passport applications include driver's licenses, passports, Naturalization Certificates and government or military IDs. Two passport photos are required and must be 2 inches by 2 inches in size, color photos, less than 6 months old, in casual clothing, of the person's full face against a white background, and 1 to 1-3/8 of an inch from the bottom of the chin to the forehead. Nonprescription glasses, hats and headgear are not permitted in passport photos.
Passport cards are an alternative form of a U.S. passport that can be used to re-enter the United States after some international travel. Passport cards are acceptable for use when an American citizen is re-entering the U.S. by land or sea from countries such as Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean Islands. Passport cards cannot be used to re-enter the U.S. from any of these countries if a person is traveling by air. Passport cards are about the size of a driver's license and are less expensive and more convenient than a regular passport book for U.S. citizens who are driving across the Canadian or Mexican borders or taking a cruise ship in the Caribbean.
